Jacques Lodewyck Du Plessis

Introduction

Jacques Lodewyck Du Plessis is a former design and technology teacher at John Lyon School in London. On 14 June 2024 he pleaded guilty at Stoke on Trent Crown Court to and was convicted of six offences involving a child — meeting a child following sexual grooming, making and distributing indecent photographs of a child, and three counts of sexual activity with a child. In June 2026 a Teaching Regulation Agency panel accepted the convictions as conclusive proof of a relevant offence, and he was banned from teaching for life with no review period.

Background Information

Du Plessis commenced employment at John Lyon School on 1 September 2022 as a design and technology teacher. He was suspended from work on 10 May 2024, when the school became aware of his arrest for sexual offences against a child. His employment was terminated on 21 May 2024, and a referral was made to the TRA on 30 May 2024.

The TRA’s notice of proceedings, dated 5 September 2025, alleged conviction of a relevant offence. The panel convened on 11 June 2026 by virtual hearing, chaired by Mrs Shabana Robertson. Du Plessis was not present and was not represented, having provided no formal response or admission to the facts. No witnesses gave evidence; the panel decided on the certificate of conviction and the police national computer record.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

Adjudicated vs. alleged. Jacques Lodewyck Du Plessis was convicted by a criminal court, and his convictions are matters of court record accepted by the TRA panel as conclusive proof; nothing in this section is an unadjudicated allegation. He admitted the facts by pleading guilty to the offences in the criminal proceedings at Stoke on Trent Crown Court; to the TRA panel he provided no formal response and no admission.

On 14 June 2024, Du Plessis pleaded guilty to and was convicted at Stoke on Trent Crown Court of:

• one count of meeting a child following sexual grooming;
• one count of making indecent photographs of a child;
• one count of distributing indecent photographs of a child/children; and
• three counts of sexual activity with a child.

The regulator’s advice required the panel to accept the certificate of conviction as conclusive proof of the conviction and the facts it necessarily implied, absent exceptional circumstances. Finding none, it found all four allegations proved.

The sentencing remarks set out that the case involved a sexual relationship with a child who was a pupil at another school, and sexual activity with a child in a public place. A box including a bondage kit, sex toys, and a pair of boxer shorts for a child was found under his desk at the school — which the panel held made the offending relevant to his role as a teacher. The offending was “deliberate, repeated” and “involving knowingly engaging sexually with a 15-year-old child”.

On 17 April 2025, Du Plessis was sentenced at Stoke on Trent Crown Court to eight years and three months’ imprisonment, the counts to run concurrently. He was also placed on the Sex Offenders Register indefinitely and made subject to an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

Public Reaction and Consequences

The panel found a strong public interest in the safeguarding and wellbeing of pupils, the protection of the public, maintaining public confidence in the profession and upholding proper standards. Du Plessis’ indefinite inclusion on the Sex Offenders Register and his Sexual Harm Prevention Order “emphasised the seriousness and gravity of his conduct”, and his behaviour “ultimately led to a sentence of imprisonment, which was indicative of the seriousness of the offences committed”. Seeing no evidence of his history or ability as a teacher, it concluded the adverse considerations outweighed any interest in retaining him.

On mitigation, the sentencing remarks recorded him as being of “good character” until the conviction, and the panel accepted he had pleaded guilty, acknowledging he had “destroyed two families” and “devastated his career”. It noted the judge’s comment that Du Plessis went ahead with the grooming and sexual activity “for the satisfaction of himself only”. The panel did not accept the incident was out of character and found no mitigating circumstances: he had not engaged with the proceedings and provided no material demonstrating remorse or acknowledgment of the impact of his actions on the victim and their family. The available evidence suggested “an attempt to minimise his culpability and involvement”, and he had “demonstrated no insight into his conduct”, failing to appreciate that responsibility lay with him rather than with the victim.

Finding every category of case that weighs against a review period relevant — serious sexual misconduct, any sexual misconduct involving a child, and making or distributing indecent images of a child — the panel concluded the case fell “at the most serious end of the spectrum” and recommended a prohibition order with immediate effect and no review period. Decision maker Marc Cavey, on behalf of the Secretary of State, agreed: the lack of evidence of insight “means that there is some risk of the repetition of this behaviour and this puts at risk the future wellbeing of pupils”.

Current Status

The panel’s determination is dated 11 June 2026; Marc Cavey’s decision on behalf of the Secretary of State is dated 15 June 2026. Du Plessis is prohibited from teaching indefinitely and cannot teach in any school, sixth form college, relevant youth accommodation or children’s home in England. Because the order carries no review period, he “shall not be entitled to apply for restoration of his eligibility to teach”. The order takes effect when served, and he has a right of appeal to the High Court within 28 days of notice. The outcome was published on GOV.UK on 10 July 2026.

Impact on Their Career/Life

The prohibition order forecloses any return to teaching in England for life, with no route back. The criminal consequences run alongside it: eight years and three months in prison, indefinite inclusion on the Sex Offenders Register and an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order. The panel also noted safeguarding concerns arising from the items found under his desk at the school, indicating “the potential for harm for pupils in the School within which he taught”. The published decision remains a permanent, searchable public record of his convictions and his ban.

Sources

• Teaching Regulation Agency, “Teacher misconduct panel outcome: Mr Jacques Lodewyck Du Plessis,” published 10 July 2026 — source